Because of their vote on Wednesday night to limit collective bargaining for some public workers, eight GOP Wisconsin state senators may face recall elections in the coming weeks.

The national unions and the Democrats nationally have really decided that theyre going to try to make Wisconsin an example for other states, says Mark Jefferson, chairman of the Wisconsin Republican party. Their message is, he says, If you intended to pursue these reforms, we will intimidate you as best we can, and there will be retribution.

To recall a state senator in Wisconsin, a group needs to file a petition, and then collect signatures from eligible voters in the senators district. The number of signatures required is 25 percent of the number of votes cast in that district in the last gubernatorial election. Wisconsin law also requires that a politician have been in office a year before any recall election can occur, which is why not all 18 GOP senators are facing recalls.

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Democratic party reported that it had about 15 percent of the signatures it needed. On Thursday, Democratic spokesman Graeme Zielinski reported that updated numbers were not available, but that the number of signatures absolutely has increased.

We raised $250,000 in the last twelve hours alone [i.e., the hours immediately after the vote] to support these recall efforts, he adds, because people are spitting mad. People are itching for some way to talk back to Scott Walker. The recall is now the most immediate way that they can help.

Jefferson acknowledges that the recall efforts against Republicans are clearly very real. The Democrats have raised a couple million dollars already, when you put together what the state Democratic party has raised and the Democratic senate campaign committee, he says. And the outside groups, theyve turned their stunt into a campaign cash cow. Theyve got the resources to pump out there.

After filing a recall petition, organizers have 60 days to collect signatures. If they gather enough signatures, state law requires a period of at least 31 days for reviewing and validating those signatures. If the result is that there are enough legitimate signatures, an election is scheduled for six weeks later.

Republicans have mounted recall efforts of their own against the eight Democratic senators eligible for recall. Jefferson says theres a lot of enthusiasm on the ground right now for the recalls of Democrats, but he has not yet released any numbers on how many signatures have been gathered.

Republican state senator Randy Hopper, who is being targeted for a recall, says that recall threats had been used earlier to to try to bully members of my caucus into voting a different way. He adds that the prospect of a recall election is really the last thing on my mind.

My colleagues and I have received substantial death threats today, Hopper says. So thinking about politics right now really isnt something that is a priority to me.

He also sees significant differences between the Democratic and Republican recall efforts. My colleagues and I are being targeted for standing up and doing our job, he says. Were being targeted because people dont like the decisions weve made or the votes that weve cast. I think thats very different from the recalls going on against a group of people who refuse to do their jobs, who refuse to be here working on behalf of their constituents.

For the Democrats, the magic number is three: If they succeed in recalling three Republicans, the senate will flip to Democratic control. And they are not concerned about losing any seats themselves through recall elections. Talking about the Republican recall efforts, Zielinski says, They have no momentum.

Gov. Scott Walker will not be eligible for a recall effort until next year. But Zielinski says the Democratic party will definitely target him then.

Jefferson calls the possibility of a Walker recall not likely at all.

I think people are going to, over time, appreciate the reforms that will have been implemented, he says.

Jefferson is also confident that if recall elections occur, the Republican senators will survive.

I think well withstand it, but only if we are able to mobilize our people and counter what the Democrats are doing, Jefferson explains. Were never going to match them dollar for dollar. We know that. But we do have a lot of taxpayers out there who have been waiting for these types of reforms to take place. And we think theyre going to stand strong on election day.

I always try and turn the facts 180 to see how it would work and how it would be reported.

so lets say the MA GOP who are in a minority left for NH.
The republican voters storm the state house,.
trap Barbey frank, Kerry etc in their offices.
Republicans then threaten those reps
Republicans then protest outside their houses thus causing grief to their families.
Then death threats are done to the reps.
Republicans damage the state house

Would the media then cover that angle the very same as they are now?

HELL NO
The corrupt media even named the tea party as dangerous, violent etc with no evidence and yet they say this is peaceful.

Obama would get his knockers in a twist and say knock it off and that the Govt will not back down to tuggery

19
posted on 03/11/2011 7:38:44 AM PST
by manc
(Shame on all who voted for the repeal of DADT, who supported it or never tried to stop it. Traitors)

It could indeed. I do think that there is a very angry but silent majority here in WI. Sykes was talking this morning about how union people are confronting private business owners throughout the area here (Milwaukee) saying you have until March 17th to publicly repudiate Gov. Walker or risk being protested or boycotted.

A recall petition requires about 15,000 valid signatures to be collected in 60 days. That’s a lot of signatures and the rent a mobs from out of state aren’t eligible. Petitions are very frequently tossed for inadequate numbers or invalid signatures. Then they still have to hold the election.
It isn’t the same as voting in a online poll.
And why on earth do they need money? Are they buying signatures? It’s not like the mainstream media isn’t giving them plenty of air time to get their message out.

30
posted on 03/11/2011 8:31:00 AM PST
by Wiser now
(Happiness is not an absence of problems, but the ability to deal with them.)

I've been following WI from the start. The GOP actually started recall efforts for some of the dems that fled quite a while ago, even before the $100/day fine passed.

The difference is that the Reps were using the recall in hopes of forcing the dems to return home to defend themselves. The dems are using the recall because they don't like the actions of the Reps who did show up for work.

I guess the million dollar question is:

How many of those who voted for Reps in 2010 will change their vote based on the what Walker and the Reps just passed?

31
posted on 03/11/2011 8:35:08 AM PST
by ConservativeWarrior
(In last year's nests, there are no birds this year.)

Republicans have mounted recall efforts of their own against the eight Democratic senators eligible for recall. Jefferson says theres a lot of enthusiasm on the ground right now for the recalls of Democrats, but he has not yet released any numbers on how many signatures have been gathered.

Recall just doesn't remove, it just set it up on the ballot. GOP better realize that during this time period take no chances and pass everything they can to eliminate all collective bargaining and anything else that will fluster the Democrats.

My question is when do union membership start getting a bigger paycheck because the Union dues are no longer being withheld? Many may think they have a better way of spending their money than making that check out to the Union.

One would think they would go after the flesbaggers who ran out of town rather than fight?however democrat logic isn’t very safe it’s a like to beating up the guy who sleeps with your wife and not than buy the guy a beer for showing you what your wife is.

Do these retards know that they have to get signatures from the people who live in the respective senators’ districts? Looks like they may be collecting a bunch of invalid signatures from out-of-state goon imports.

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